Anime Foley Translation Lab

Foley breaks down into three pillars:

• Feet — every footstep on every surface
• Moves — cloth, breath, body movement
• Specifics — every prop a character touches

With your group: what's the most surprising movie sound effect you've ever heard? What do you think made it?

Today's mission:

1. Translate a Spanish-subtitled anime clip into English
2. Build every sound effect from scratch with everyday objects
3. Perform it live — voices reading, Foley team in action — to a silent projection

Every language writes sound differently. Look at these — which feel closest to English? Which are wildly different?

Quick discussion: Why would a heartbeat be doki-doki in Japanese and pum-pum in Spanish? What does that tell you about how languages work?

📁 Vocabulary cards + translation worksheet are in the Google Drive folder. Your group will use these during translation.

You'll need: one aluminum pie tin, plastic wrap, tape, a pinch of salt, a bluetooth speaker (with built-in microphone), and your phone.

Plastic wrap stretched tight over the tin — like a drum

Tin sitting on the bluetooth speaker — speaker faces up into the tin

1. Place the pie tin right-side up (open top facing up). Stretch plastic wrap tightly across the entire opening — it needs to be drum-tight, no sag. Pull it taut from opposite sides, then tape all the way around the rim to lock it in place.
2. Sprinkle a very thin layer of salt on the plastic wrap. Just a pinch — a light dusting across the whole surface. Too much and nothing will move.
3. Set the pie tin on top of the bluetooth speaker with the speaker facing upward into the tin.
4. Open the Tone Generator app on your phone. Set the frequency to around 330 Hz to start.
5. Hold the bluetooth speaker's microphone end near your phone's speaker so it picks up the tone and plays it through the speaker below the tin. Watch the salt. Sweep the frequency slowly up and down — notice where the patterns appear and shift.

Full setup: pie tin on speaker · Tone Generator app running · microphone held near phone speaker

• At what frequencies did the rice move the most?
• What does this prove about what sound is?
• Why would two different objects — a coconut and a horse hoof — produce similar brain reactions?

Your brain identifies sound by vibration pattern, not by source. A coconut struck on stone vibrates like a hoof on stone — your brain says "horse." A walnut cracked near a mic sounds like a knuckle breaking. Today you'll fool your audience's brains with everyday objects. That's the whole trick.

This clip is from a Japanese anime called Space Symphony Maetel — part of a huge sci-fi universe by artist Leiji Matsumoto. Same universe as Captain Harlock and Galaxy Express 999.

Setting: A space pirate ship is under attack. Laser missiles incoming. We're on the bridge.

Three characters:

• Captain Harlock — the tall one in the long coat with the skull insignia. Calm. A legendary space pirate.
• Tochiro — the short one at the wooden wheel, in the cloak and wide hat. Harlock's best friend. About to do something bold. (Written "Toshiro" in the Spanish subtitles — same person.)
• Yattaran — the kid in the pirate bandana. Currently panicking.

Three energies to capture: Harlock = calm, almost amused. Tochiro = intense, dramatic. Yattaran = full panic.

Watch the silent clip below, twice. Don't translate yet. Just watch for the three characters and their energy.

Work through Part 1 of your 📝 Translation Worksheet as a group — 13 short lines, multiple choice. Move into Part 2 (Translator's Workshop) if you finish early.

Translation aids OK: Google Translate, dictionary apps, group debate. Translators argue about word choices for a living — that's the job.

Pick one line that was hardest. Be ready to share with the room: what made it hard, what your group decided, and why.

As a group, write down every sound this scene needs. Aim for 8–12. Think about:

• Footsteps (on what surface?)
• Cloth, breath, body movement
• Voices and shouts
• Mechanical sounds (wooden wheel, buttons, alarms)
• Background battle (engine rumble, distant explosions)

Everyone in your group covers something:

Your group's kit is on your table. The Creative Bin in the middle of the room has extras. Don't hoard — other groups need props too.

Don't try to be perfect yet. Just play. Test the weirdest prop first. You have about 10 minutes — make them count.

When your teacher comes to your table, do a quick run-through. You'll get one piece of feedback. Apply it before your full run.

Voices reading aloud, Foley team performing, all synced to the clip. Pay attention to timing — your sound has to match what's on screen. Lock in your prop placement. You're up soon.

You've got this. Voices at the mic. Foley team in formation. Silent clip rolls. Bring the scene to life.

When you're not performing, you're the audience. After each group: give one comment — "I noticed I really liked __________."

After every group has performed — your teacher plays the original Japanese audio for the first time. Listen. How does your version compare? What did the original do? What did your version do better?